Solar and lunar eclipses (with the light box)

Principle

In the experiment on "shadow formation" the students investigated the origin of umbra and penumbra. In doing so they determined that areas of shadow only occur behind illuminated opaque objects and that the rectilinear propagation of light is one of the reasons for shadow formation.
To apply and strengthen this knowledge the students should investigate the conditions for the occurrence of a lunar or solar eclipse in this experiment. In doing so, not only their above-mentioned physical knowledge will be refreshed but also an important contribution to the students' comprehension of these natural phenomena will be made. A particular difficulty in this experiment is that the student must change his or her observational plane to understand the course of events - especially in the case of a solar eclipse. Using suitable examples which are independent of the experiment (e.g. an observing passenger in a train or on a platform), the transformation of the observational position should be practised.

Benefits

• Multifunctional light box - All-in-one: Can be used for geometric optics on the table, colour mixing and on an optical bench
• Extension with others sets at anytime, no additional light sources needed, recognition value for students

Tasks

How do eclipses of the moon or the sun occur? The aim of this experiment is to investigate how eclipses of the moon and the sun occur.